AACTE

Government Relations and Advocacy

AACTE Government Relations Updates
- March 2008 (PDF)
REGISTER NOW FOR FREE TEACH GRANT WEBINARS – AACTE and the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) are co-sponsoring a series of free webinars on the TEACH Grant program. The first two webinars will be offered on April 7th and April 9th. Click on the web link to register for both events (you must register separately for each event). http://www.nasfaa.org/redesign/WebinarCenter.asp If you have questions, please contact Mary Harrill-McClellan at mharrill@aacte.org
- April 7th TEACH Grant Webinar: 1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. EST
  In this Webinar, NASFAA staff examines the TEACH Grant Program and discusses responding to the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) published on March 21. Dr. Jane West will speak from the teacher education point of view. Gail McLarnon and Kay Gilcher, federal negotiators for the TEACH Grant Program, will also join us to help answer your questions.
- April 9th TEACH Grant Webinar: 1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. EST
  This second Webinar in the TEACH Grant series will focus on proposed rules for counseling students, and implications of the program for recruiting students. A school’s successful implementation of the TEACH Grant Program may well hinge on cooperation between its financial aid office and teacher education academics, either on its own campus or from other institutions with which it has academic arrangements. Be sure to listen to this panel discussion by working professionals in both the financial aid and teacher education fields.
In conjunction with AACTE’s Day on the Hill, June 18-19, 2008, the association plans to release a publication entitled “Partnerships that Work: Turning Around Low-Performing Schools”. Additionally, it will hold a briefing on Capitol Hill on the same topic on June 19th. We would like to include in the publication examples of partnerships between AACTE members and K-12 schools that have improved student learning at low-performing schools. If you have such a partnership and have the data (student achievement scores, graduation rates, etc.) please take a few minutes to complete the survey. If we use your entry, we will contact you for additional information.
Click here to take survey.
AACTE members are successful securing a significant number of signatories on the House and Senate “Dear Colleague” letters asking for increased funding for the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant program. View the letters to see which Members of the House and Senate signed onto the “Dear Colleagues.”
Click here to read AACTE’s recommendations for the Higher Education Act Conference
AACTE has developed a short fact sheet on the new TEACH Grant program that is slated to begin in July 2008. This program, authorized in the College Cost Reduction and Access Act will offer scholarships to undergraduate and graduate students who want to pursue a teaching career. Regulations for the program are being developed, and AACTE will be releasing more information as it becomes available about implementing the program on your campuses. Click Here for the Teach Grant Fact Sheet
On November 16, two AACTE deans presented comments at a public hearing at the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C. The Department has announced its intention to form a negotiated rulemaking committee that will develop regulations for the TEACH Grants and other programs authorized in the College Cost Reduction and Access (CCRA) Act of 2007. It is holding three regional hearings, prior to forming the rulemaking committee, across the country to hear from the stakeholders who carry out and participate in the programs in the CCRA. Dr. Sandy Robinson, Dean of the College of Education at the University of Central Florida, and Dr. Dennis Pataniczek, Dean of the School of Education and Professional Studies at Salisbury University (MD), spoke at the hearing and raised several issues with the Department to be considered in the development of the regulations for the TEACH Grants. Dr. Robinson testified on behalf of AACTE and Dr. Pataniczek on behalf of Salisbury University and the Maryland Association of Colleges for Teacher Education.
On October 23, 2007 the U.S. Senate passed the FY 08 Labor/Health and Human Services/Education (L/HHS/E) appropriations bill. The Teacher Quality Enhancement (TQE) grant program was recommended for elimination by President Bush and received a funding cut in both the House and the Senate bill. Currently funded at $60 million, the House bill cuts TQE funding to $40 million and the Senate bill to $28.5 million. On behalf of teacher educators across the country Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) engaged Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA and chair of the L/HHS/E Appropriations Subcommittee) and Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA and ranking member of the L/HHS/E Appropriations Subcommittee) in a colloquy that recognized the important work in which schools of education endeavor to provide high-quality teachers for the K-12 classrooms. Because of the complex and expensive nature of this work, Senator Obama urged Sens. Harkin and Specter to accept the House funding level for the TQE program during the L/HHS/E conference. Senator Obama contributed significantly to the Higher Education Act reauthorization bill (H.R. 2669) that the Senate passed last summer, and he is particularly involved in revamping Title II of the HEA, which addresses higher-education-based teacher preparation programs. View Dr. Sharon P. Robinson’s statement on behalf of AACTE regarding Senator Obama’s efforts to restore funding to TQE Grants.
On September 27, 2007 President Bush signed the College Cost Reducation and Access Act into law. This legislation contains a new mandatory spending program called the TEACH Grants. Click here to view the legislative language for the TEACH Grants.
Click here to view how schools, colleges, and departments of education are represented in the House's draft NCLB reauthorization bill.
Click here to view AACTE's letter to Chairman Miller and Ranking Member McKeon regarding the House's draft of the NCLB reauthorization bill.
High School Teaching for the Twenty-first Century: Preparing Students for College
On September 12, the Alliance released High School Teaching for the Twenty-first Century: Preparing Students for College with a panel of national experts on teacher quality including, Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond, Stanford University School of Education and member of AACTE’s Board of Directors and Dr. Jane West, AACTE’s vice president of government relations, to discuss how the teacher preparation pipeline, from pre-service training to professional development, can be strengthened in order to raise the quality of high school teaching in order to prepare students for success beyond the high school diploma. Studies show that college remediation rates are high and college completion rates are low, signaling that a fundamental disconnect exists between the way that high school teachers prepare their students for the future and what students truly need to know to meet the demands of college. Decades of reform have focused on restructuring high schools or increasing course requirements for graduation, but the nation has so far failed to address the biggest factor in improving student success—the type of teaching that occurs inside the classroom. Plans and actions designed to reform high schools must include efforts to improve teaching with the goal of preparing all students for postsecondary education. View the full presentation at http://www.all4ed.org/events/HSTeach21st/agenda.html
On Friday, September 7, 2007 the U.S. Congress approved the Higher Education Reconciliation Bill http://thomas.loc.gov/ (College Cost Reduction and Access Act, H.R. 2669) creating TEACH grants, an innovative program to recruit and support new teachers. Under Title I of the bill, TEACH Grants offer tuition assistance (scholarships) for undergraduates and graduates who agree to teach for four years in public schools with high shortage or high need subject areas including, mathematics, science, foreign languages, bilingual education, special education, and reading.
On September 6, 2007, Dr. William Tate, IV, Chair of the Department of Education at the Washington University in St. Louis, testified on the behalf of AACTE before the National Mathematics Advisory Panel. Dr. Tate, presented AACTE’s eight policy recommendations to the Panel which would significantly improve the quality of mathematics teaching and teacher preparation programs. Briefly, the recommendations are:
1. Support syntheses and wide dissemination of the best research available
2. Support research on critical mathematics teacher/teaching issues
3. Encourage consensus-building efforts to develop high-level student mathematics standards
4. Support the development of student data systems with links to teacher preparation programs
5. Support teacher preparation reform at both state and federal levels
6. Eliminate out-of-field teaching
7. Encourage investments in mathematics teacher recruitment and retention efforts
8. Correct the inequitable distribution of high-quality teachers
Statement by Dr. Jane West, Vice President of Government Relations & Advocacy for the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education on the Filing of Renee v. Spellings
On June 21, 2007, AACTE, along with the U.S. Senate Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education Caucus, hosted a Congressional Briefing on, “Preparing STEM Teachers: The Key to Global Competitiveness”, in Washington D.C.
Valdine McLean (NV) and Lisa M. Suarez-Carabello (OH), two exemplary secondary STEM teachers, shared their successes in the classroom and provided recommendations to policymakers on how to address the critical shortage of effective STEM teachers. Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond of Stanford University provided an overview of how other nations invest in the preparation of their STEM teachers in order to sustain a competitive economy. And Robin Willner of IBM provided an business perspective on the critical need for effective STEM teachers to educate our nation’s future workforce. Sharon Robinson, president and CEO of AACTE, will serve as moderator. View testimony of speakers here. View speaker biographies here.
AACTE released a publication, “Preparing STEM Teachers: The Key to Global Competitiveness”, which highlights 50 teacher preparation programs across the country dedicated to increasing the number of effective K-12 STEM educators.
On May 17, 2007 Sharon P. Robinson, Ed.D., president and CEO of the AACTE testified before the House Committee on Education and Labor’s Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness at a hearing entitled, “Preparing Teachers for the Classroom: The Role of the Higher Education Act and No Child Left Behind.” Dr. Robinson’s testimony examines Title II of the Higher Education Act (HEA) and Title II of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). View a full copy of Dr. Robinson’s testimony.

Summary of Dr. Robinson’s Testimony
The two Title IIs of HEA and NCLB are critical levers in supporting and strengthening the recruitment, preparation, and professional development of educators. However, as written and implemented, the two titles work parallel to each other rather than in concert. This mode of operation does not reflect the current reality of how schools of education and P-12 schools integrally work together to improve PreK-12 student learning. AACTE recommends that both titles be amended to support the innovative relationships that promote the improvement of instructional practice in both the academy and the P-12 classroom and to strategically target critical areas, including:
- the growing teacher shortages in subject areas such as math and science and for special education and English language learners;
- the maldistribution of teachers;
- the teacher shortages in urban and rural areas; and
- the ability of all teachers to serve diverse learners.
AACTE submits its NCLB legislative language recommendations to the Senate HELP Committee.
On April 13, AACTE submitted legislative recommendations for the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act”
Committee Lists for the 110th Congress (PDF) including the Senate Appropriations Committee; Senate Appropriations Subcommittee Chairs; House Appropriations Committee; House Appropriations Subcommittee Chairs; House Education and Labor Committee; Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee; Senate Science, Commerce and Transportation Committee; House Science and Technology Committee
Dr. Michael Hardman Testifies Before Education and Labor Subcommittee on Preparing Special Education Teachers.
On Thursday, March 29, 2007 Dr. Michael Hardman, dean-designate of the College of Education at the University of Utah testified before the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor’s Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education. Dr. Hardman's Testimony (PDF)
March 29, 2007
Dr. Julie Underwood Testifies Before House Appropriations Subcommittee on Funding for Teacher Quality Initiatives
On Wednesday, March 28, 2007 Dr. Julie Underwood, dean of the School of Education at The University of Wisconsin – Madison, represented the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) as she testified before the U.S. House Committee on Appropriation’s Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies. Dr. Underwood's Testimony (PDF)
Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond's Testimony to the Sentate H.E.L.P Committee on Recruting and Retaining Teachers: What Matters Most and What Can Government Do? The Committee hearing, entitled, NCLB Reauthorization: Strategies for Attracting, Supporting, and Retaining High Quality Educators, took place on Tuesday, March 6, 2007.
AACTE Commends Commission on No Child Left Behind
AACTE's Recommendations Regarding the Definition of a "Highly Qualified Teacher" in the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (PDF)
AACTE's Statement to the Commission on No Child Left Behind. (PDF)
About Government Relations and Advocacy
The work of the AACTE Department of Government and External Relations focuses on three general areas:
- Education policy: Maintain an issues-sensing network that monitors teacher education related actions of federal and state governments, national organizations, and state and regional agencies.
- Support the work of the Advisory Council of State Representatives (ACSR): presidents and liaison representatives from state associations of colleges for teacher education.
- Establish and maintain a credible voice in state and federal policy making, advocating for high quality in student learning.
The AACTE Department of Government and External Relations works closely with the Committee on Government Relations and Advocacy.
For further information about the Department of Government and External Relations, please contact Dr. Jane West at jwest@aacte.org or at 202.478.4593
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